Bulk tying

[mr trout]

I just started experimenting with tying in a bit of a different fashion for me. I have started tying in bulk, meaning I will tie a dozen or more of the same fly at a time. I have been tying in stages, where I will tie the bodies up, and whip finish it, then when all the bodies are done, go thru and do all the hackles. It seems to speed up my tying because I am only dealing with one or two materials at a time and I can break up the tying over a couple sessions. This is especially helpful on patterns like the bloody mary where I coat the body with cement, allowing it to dry before putting on the hackles. Do any of you do this? Or what sort of tricks do you have for tying in large quantity? I am trying to fill up a large drawer full of my most used flies by spring, and then draw from those flies throughout the summer instead of sacrificing fishing time by having to tie more flies.... We'll see if it works. It might be like having my own little fly shop in my house.

[Milton Conrad]

My "bulk" tying consists of up to a dozen flies at one sitting. I will vary hook size and colour but stay with one pattern . When one is finished, it's on to the next until they're all done. Since my eyes aren't what they used to be, I'll start with the larger sizes and go smaller. Seems to help my fingers limber up for the smaller sizes too.

Your method is an interesting one that is worth a try. It certainly sounds like it would cut down on all the materials that tend to clutter up my small tying area.

Regards

[hikepat]

To me bulk tying is the same fly and same hook size completing one fly from start to finish one after another. Since reading AK Production tying, I am finding I am doing more and more of this. The nice thing is I end up with less materials out and its easier to clean up when I am done. By the 10th or so of the same fly of the same size, they even start to look pretty good at least to my eye.
The trouble is after a dozen of the same fly I want to either stop or do some type of my own creation to break things up.

[g_smolt]

When I tie multi-stage flies (articulates, with thread-cuts, etc.) I tend to tie in "stages", as you describe. As an example, when doing beadhead/-body stones, I try to tie in batches of 2 dozen. I cut all legs, antennae, and chenilles beforehand, then do basewrap/leg/antennae as one stage, then chenille/wingcase as another stage, then bead-body as the finish. The plus to this style (IMHO) is that you get a "groove" going for a certain feature, like leg spacing or antenna "tilt"...

for single stage stuff, sure there are tricks, but most are personal setup-specific.

My personal interpretation of "bulk" is more than 3 dz/day... or 250+ dz/year...YMMV

Mark

[Daryle Holmstrom]

When I was a kid in the sixties we had a supplier of flys for the local westside here. They were Robert flies. They sold for .25 or five for a buck. Had the chance to meet them one day at the local shop and asked them how they do it. Well he said they tie six dozen each of one pattern before the first coffee break in the morning. Just himF and his wife,, so 144 flies before first coffee. Didn't ask him how he spent the rest of the day. Found out later through a friend that they only tied six months out of the year and spent the rest of the year fly fishing.

Daryle

[Jerry Daschofsky]

I'm like hikepat. I do bulk, I'm doing quite a bit (I hate doing that much though lol). I actually set out all the materials and finish each one. Takes a little prep, but goes pretty fast. BUT, do it however bests suites you. Sometimes you can get a system that works for YOU. So if it works, do it.

[mike doughty]

I just pick 2 or 3 patterns at a time and tie the crap out of them. with no wife or kids in my house there is nothing holding me back. i tie generally between a dozen or 2 each night and if you tie at night then it shouldn't cut into your fishing time so much.

[mr trout]

and if you tie at night then it shouldn't cut into your fishing time so much.

True, unless it is like my last summer. I would work from 6am-4pm weekdays, then leave and fish till 11pm up to 3 days a week. Other evenings were already full, hence no fishing... I could have tied from 11pm - 2am, then got up at 5 for work, but I think I would have bottomed out pretty quick:p :thumb:

[sixfinger]

I've heard of a production tier that used 4 or 5 vises and tied them all at the same time, one stage at a time.(i.e. tie on the thread on all 5, then tie the tail in on all of them and so on) Just like your new method but with more vises. I cant remember her name, but maybe someone else knows who I'm talking about.

[FT]

trevor,

I've been tying a minimum of 1 dozen flies of the same pattern and size (except for married wing classic salmon flies) since the late 60's. It allows me to always have flies ready to replace those I lose so I don't worry about hanging a fly up and having to break it off. I usually tie a fly from beginning to end; however, with flies like Muddlers, Waller Wakers, Bombers, Deer Hair Bass Bugs, etc. I will tie them in stages.

The Muddlers have the tail, wing, and body tied as a group (the full dozen or more) and then the collar and head are spun and clipped. Deer Hair Bass Bugs have the tails (and tail skirt hackle) tied in for the full dozen, which is followed by spinning the body, clipping it, and installing the legs with a large embrodiery needle. Bombers have the tails tied in and the bodies spun for the full dozen. This is followed by tying in the wings and adding the hackle last. Waller Wakers have the wings and tails tied in, the wings are then taped together with Scotch tape and the bodies spun and clipped. This is followed by tying in the moose throat.

Spey flies with florescent or light colored floss body sections have the hook shanks first covered with flat silver tinsel (it prevents the floss for darkening and allows the florescent floss to "glow") for all dozen flies. This is followed by tying the fly start to finish.

And an added bonus to tying a least a dozen of the same pattern and size is your tying also improves and your tying speed increases simply because you are not constantly getting out different materials.

[Desmond Wiles]

Bulk tying? Are you kidding?!!

I try to tie for no more than an hour or two at a time, and depending on the pattern, and if I'm familiar with it, that could amount from 2-6 an hour. Unless I've got a specific trip I'm excited about, I usually won't tie for more than an hour.

Des

[Charles Sullivan]

I tie 5 at a time. Then I change. I really only fish for steelhead so the flies aren't small, and can be as wasy or hard as I'd like. After 5 I have to change for sanity's sake. Maybe I'll hit the garage and tie tonight.
cds

[Old Man]

My bulk tying consists of about three flies. Anymore than that and I'm a wreck. Can't do anymore than that. Shakes.:(

Jim:beathead:

[Daryle Holmstrom]

My bulk tying consists of about three flies. Anymore than that and I'm a wreck. Can't do anymore than that. Shakes.:(

Jim:beathead:

Couple of shots gets rid of my shakes, what I can't stand is the Arthritis in my neck. Tie two flies and the pain is so severe that I have to rest for an hour or two. To be honest don't know how I'll do on the lakes this coming year with this pain. Somehow I'm going to bear it to teach my grandson.

Daryle

[Randy Diefert]

I'm usually at my bench everyday from 6:30 pm til 11:00 Pm. And take breaks offoand on to bs on this site and 2 others. But, I tye everyday. I usually will do multiples in stages but, it kind of depends what
I'm working on. Right now, it's Acetate Leaches. The first day I cut different colors of Acetate floss into 3/4" strips. I went through 400 yds of floss. Then once it was all bagged , I put it through the bean grinder, Then I came up with my color blends and blended those again in the bean grinder. I then spent 3 days making dubbing ropes with those blends. I then tyed the basic leach patterns ( SEveral dozensssss)then , I took a few of those dozens and made them into stick leaches. I like to tye the same project start to finish because like it's already been said you can keep your materials more organized and it's a faster clean-up when you're done. And I agree that if you're going to sit down and tye 5 dozen flies they will get better as you go. Providing you don't start skimping corners. I try to make each one look the same because you don't know which fly is going to be the one that is photographed.To me that is the hardest thing about swapping flies. Each fly has to be a clone of the others and; sometimes you get "creative" in the middle of a tying binge. You have to put that fly aside and go back to what you were doing and keep that one for your own box.

[John Hicks]

Bult tying for me is putting too much dubbing on the thread for my size 16 adams and ending up with something that looks like the cat just coughed it up.